Evolution of the mammalian baculum. This project aims to test the hypothesis that the shape of the mammalian baculum (penis bone) evolved via its stimulatory effects on females that promote reproduction. The baculum is the most morphologically divergent bone in the mammalian body. The reason for this divergence is one of the most puzzling enigmas of mammalian morphology. This project will use comparative evolutionary methods, quantitative genetics, morphometrics, behavioural analysis and techniq ....Evolution of the mammalian baculum. This project aims to test the hypothesis that the shape of the mammalian baculum (penis bone) evolved via its stimulatory effects on females that promote reproduction. The baculum is the most morphologically divergent bone in the mammalian body. The reason for this divergence is one of the most puzzling enigmas of mammalian morphology. This project will use comparative evolutionary methods, quantitative genetics, morphometrics, behavioural analysis and techniques from neurobiology and physiology to test this hypothesis. This project aims to address fundamental questions in reproductive biology.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE120100019
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Miniaturisation: sensory limitations and navigational competence. Body size in most animals correlates with behavioural competence, brain capacity and sensory receptors. But since the navigational challenges faced by animals both big and small are similar, this project aims to identify the sensory and behavioural costs of miniaturisation and the strategies animals have evolved to cope with it.
The physiological mechanisms underlying animal group dynamics. The project aims to provide novel insights into how individual differences in muscle biomechanics and metabolism constrain group assemblages, and the extent to which these constraints can cause fission and fusion of populations in changing environments. This research is significant because most ecological and evolutionary processes and their management occur at the level of groups. The project expects to yield a theoretical model cal ....The physiological mechanisms underlying animal group dynamics. The project aims to provide novel insights into how individual differences in muscle biomechanics and metabolism constrain group assemblages, and the extent to which these constraints can cause fission and fusion of populations in changing environments. This research is significant because most ecological and evolutionary processes and their management occur at the level of groups. The project expects to yield a theoretical model calibrated against empirical data to predict group dynamics of natural populations in changing environments, and of human crowds as diseases and lifestyle change physiological capacities.Read moreRead less
Information processing at its limits: from the dimmest habitats to the smallest sizes. Ensuring optimal information processing at the limits of size and ambient light is a challenge for technical systems, but has been elegantly solved by animals. The challenge of navigation is similar for animals of all sizes and in both day and night. This project aims to conduct a comparative analysis to identify the consequence of size and light on the information processing capacities for visual navigation. ....Information processing at its limits: from the dimmest habitats to the smallest sizes. Ensuring optimal information processing at the limits of size and ambient light is a challenge for technical systems, but has been elegantly solved by animals. The challenge of navigation is similar for animals of all sizes and in both day and night. This project aims to conduct a comparative analysis to identify the consequence of size and light on the information processing capacities for visual navigation. Outcomes of this project will reveal the behavioural and physiological adaptations needed and the costs associated with navigating in the dimmest of habitats and at the smallest of sizes. Identifying such optimal biological solutions for robust navigation will be relevant for image processing, computer vision and robotics.Read moreRead less
Adaptive function of insect cuticular lipids. Insects secrete onto their surface a cocktail of high melting-point waxes. These biological compounds have been found to be involved in communication but are also thought to protect the insect from water loss and pathogen invasion. Insects represent the most abundant group of animals on Earth. It has been suggested that the dual role of surface waxes in ecological adaptation and reproduction may be key to their remarkable divergence. However, little ....Adaptive function of insect cuticular lipids. Insects secrete onto their surface a cocktail of high melting-point waxes. These biological compounds have been found to be involved in communication but are also thought to protect the insect from water loss and pathogen invasion. Insects represent the most abundant group of animals on Earth. It has been suggested that the dual role of surface waxes in ecological adaptation and reproduction may be key to their remarkable divergence. However, little is known of the function of individual compounds within mixtures of insect waxes. Using chemical analysis, neurophysiology and whole animal performance, the aim of this project is to provide a detailed understanding of the function of insect surface wax with potential for bioinspired products.Read moreRead less
Paternal effects: Non-genetic inheritance via seminal fluid? This project seeks to improve understanding of the mechanisms of non-genetic inheritance and its ability to promote adaptation. Although offspring are known to resemble their parents through the action of genes, there is now a growing awareness of non-genetic mechanisms by which parents can affect the growth and health of their offspring. This project aims to quantify the putative role of seminal fluid in so-called non-genetic inherita ....Paternal effects: Non-genetic inheritance via seminal fluid? This project seeks to improve understanding of the mechanisms of non-genetic inheritance and its ability to promote adaptation. Although offspring are known to resemble their parents through the action of genes, there is now a growing awareness of non-genetic mechanisms by which parents can affect the growth and health of their offspring. This project aims to quantify the putative role of seminal fluid in so-called non-genetic inheritance. Using an insect model, the project aims to identify proteins in the seminal fluid that promote early embryo development, explore how males allocate these proteins to their mates, and how females adjust their own reproduction in response to seminal fluid proteins. Improving knowledge of these mechanisms may enable the development of interventions to control the unwanted evolution of harmful organisms.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140101281
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$384,589.00
Summary
Mechanisms influencing the evolutionary trajectories of extended phenotypes. Although we know how the environment and predator-prey interactions shape traits, we have a poor grasp of the evolution of extended phenotypes. The webs of spiders have switched repeatedly between two- and three-dimensional forms over time, so are excellent models for assessing extended phenotype evolution. This project will use innovative experiments to assess whether the prey capture performance of webs or their visib ....Mechanisms influencing the evolutionary trajectories of extended phenotypes. Although we know how the environment and predator-prey interactions shape traits, we have a poor grasp of the evolution of extended phenotypes. The webs of spiders have switched repeatedly between two- and three-dimensional forms over time, so are excellent models for assessing extended phenotype evolution. This project will use innovative experiments to assess whether the prey capture performance of webs or their visibility to insects drove the repeated This project will provide insights into the interactive roles of the environment and prey in shaping extended phenotype diversification. Read moreRead less
From individual interactions to global patterns: understanding the basis of collective behaviour. Some of the most incredible sights in nature happen when animals form into groups, such as shoals or flocks. This study examines the phenomenon of collective animal behaviour to understand how simple interactions between group members scale to produce these behavioural spectacles.
Evolutionary roots of social bonds in female mammals. The social networks and friendships of wild female kangaroos and how these benefit individuals will be studied. This project will help us understand how the propensity of mammals to form friendships evolved; this understanding of the evolutionary roots of friendships will help in understanding why friendships affect peoples' health and mortality.
Social and environmental selection on female ornaments and armaments. Darwin's theory of sexual selection is remarkably successful in explaining how elaborate signals evolved in male animals, but it is unclear whether similar processes drive the evolution of female signals. This project aims to conduct empirical and comparative tests of hypotheses for female trait elaboration, capitalising on inter- and intra-specific variation in female signal form, social organisation and signalling environmen ....Social and environmental selection on female ornaments and armaments. Darwin's theory of sexual selection is remarkably successful in explaining how elaborate signals evolved in male animals, but it is unclear whether similar processes drive the evolution of female signals. This project aims to conduct empirical and comparative tests of hypotheses for female trait elaboration, capitalising on inter- and intra-specific variation in female signal form, social organisation and signalling environments. The project could generate new insight into the processes that promote and constrain phenotypic diversity in nature.Read moreRead less